Over 157 years of tradition…
Since James Ogilvie Fairlie organized the first Open Championship held at Prestwick Golf Club in 1860, making this the oldest of the four major championships in professional golf, the British Open has been hailed as THE Major to attend for avid golfers everywhere. The British Open’s Claret Jug, is also one of golf’s most prestigious awards to attain in the world of professional golf.
Now you have a chance to play the same hollowed fairways and greens, as well as tip a glass afterword at the same clubs as golf’s best professionals have for over 157 years.
Play on the courses that all of the greats have played on:
Turnberry: Where Tom Watson beat Jack Nicklaus in 1977 dubbed “The Duel in the Sun” and agonizingly lost in 2009 at aged 59.
Muirfield: Where Phil Mickelson won his Open Championship in 2013
Royal Troon: Where Henrik Stenson beat Phil Mickelson in 2016 on a dramatic final day
Prestwick: Where it all began
Carnoustie: Where Jean Van de Velde hopes floated away in the Barry Burn”
The British open tour is one of of most popular tours and easy to see why with such an abundance of the ultimate in championship links golf.
Check out a sample itinerary of our British Open Venues Golf Tours below:
Day 1: Prestwick Golf Club
- Arrive at Glasgow airport.
- Greeted by Breakaway Golf Tours Travel Executive.
- Play Prestwick.
- Stay at Trump Turnbery Luxury Resort.
Prestwick Golf Club – The home of the British Open Championship. The first open championship was played at Prestwick in 1860 and didn’t move to St. Andrew’s until 1873. Willie Park won the first Open Championship over the great Tom Morris. One of Prestwick’s strengths is the quality and variety of holes. This is a must play on your visit to Scotland.
Day 2: Royal Troon Golf Club
- Full Scottish breakfast
- Play Royal Troon Golf Club.
- Enjoy an evening meal at The Two Fat Ladies at The Marine restaurant.
- Stay at Trump Turnbery Luxury Resort.
Royal Troon Golf Club – A links golf course located in Troon, South Ayrshire, Scotland. The club was founded 137 years ago in 1878, initially with five holes. George Strath was appointed in 1881 as the club’s first golf professional. The club was granted its “Royal” accolade in 1978, during its centennial.
Its Old Course is one of the host courses for The Open Championship, one of the major championships on the PGA Tour and European Tour. The Club has hosted the Open eight times, last in 2004, won by Todd Hamilton in a 4-hole playoff against Ernie Els. It is scheduled to host again in 2016.
Past Open champions at Royal Troon include Justin Leonard, Mark Calcavecchia, Tom Watson, Tom Weiskopf, Arnold Palmer, Bobby Locke, and Arthur Havers. The last six Opens at Troon have been won by Americans.
Royal Troon is home to both the longest and shortest holes in Open Championship golf. The par-3 8th hole (“Postage Stamp”) measures a short 123 yards (112 m) and is regarded as one of the top holes in the world, while the par-5 6th (“Turnberry”) extends to 601 yards (550 m).
Two Fat Ladies at the Marine Restaurant – The perfect location for a seafood restaurant. It is delighted to have been asked to create a signature restaurant at The Marine by The Hotel Collection. Following on from the success of Two Fat Ladies at The Buttery it was a challenge to find our next adventure. The history, location and grandeur of The Marine was like manna from heaven, the perfect location for a seafood restaurant and also a chance to spread our wings outside of Glasgow for the first time.
At the heart of every good hotel lies a great restaurant with locally sourced ingredients cooked with care, served with charm and customer service of the highest level. Two Fat Ladies at The Marine will, like its Glasgow sisters, be individual in character, allowed to develop its personality over time but still have the core values of our existing restaurants: traditional dining in an unpretentious environment with the customer and value for money at its core.
Day 3: The Ailsa Course
- Full Scottish Breakfast
- Play The Ailsa course at Turnbery in the morning.
- Visit Culzean Castle and Country Park in the afternoon.
- Enjoy a night out in the town.
- Stay at the 5 Star Fairmont Hotel in St Andrews.
The Aisla Course at Turnberry – Imagine rolling hills, sandy dunes, a stiff breeze blowing off the Ayrshire coast. Before designer courses, before manicured greens and major championships, these lands inspired local Scots to play the game of golf. Beloved since its first formal course was built in 1901, Turnberry’s fairways have been shared by the game’s elite and casual enthusiasts from around the globe. Even the conversion of its links to runways during two world wars could not diminish the desire to play here, a place made for golf, where countless competitions have been waged that shall never be forgotten.
Beautiful in sun, exacting in cold and wind, Trump Turnberry Resort’s three courses are both part of golf’s legacy and part of its future. A round on The Ailsa, The Kintyre or The Arran is the kind of extraordinary experience that changes a player, professional or amateur.
The draw of that experience will keep golfers returning here forever.
Fairmont at St Andrews – The 520 acre five star Fairmont St Andrews resort encapsulates luxury, elegance and truly breathtaking surroundings in the ‘Home of Golf’. A truly unique and special venue that makes your visit one to remember, with its lavish and stunning surroundings, peaceful setting and stunning cliff top views of St Andrews and the North Sea. The resort prides itself with an array of fabulous facilities including two championship Golf Courses, The Kittocks and The Torrance, excellent dining experiences for every palette, ranging from our new Italian eatery La Cucina to The Clubhouse serving the freshest of Steak and Seafood. All of our 209 luxury guestrooms are spacious and well-proportioned with thoughtful Scottish touches. Our sumptuous Signature Spa offers a range of treatments including locally-themed massages, facial and relaxation therapies using exclusive Aromatherapy Associates products in 12 chic treatment rooms. The spacious swimming pool, sauna, steam room, Jacuzzi and relaxation room complete the experience, helping you to relax and unwind. Whatever the occasion, Fairmont St Andrews really is the perfect location to turn your getaway into a treasured memory.
European Golf Resort of the Year 2012 (IAGTO) and Best Large Hotel of the Year 2014 (Scottish Golf Tourism Awards)
Day 4: Carnoustie Golf Club
- Full Scottish breakfast
- The Old Course Experience
- Play Carnoustie Golf Club
- Enjoy Complimentary Lunch
- Stay at the 5 Star Fairmont Hotel in St Andrews.
Carnoustie Golf Links – One of the world’s oldest golf course. Golf is recorded to having been played in the early 16th century. Carnoustie first played host to The Open Championship in 1931, after modifications to the course by James Braid in 1926. The winner then was Tommy Armour, from Edinburgh.
Carnousite is described as “ A Monster” – universally known as the most difficult course on Scotland. It is universally knows as one of the most famous golf courses in golf today.
Later Open winners at Carnoustie include Henry Cotton of England in 1937, Ben Hogan of the USA in 1953, Gary Player of South Africa in 1968, Tom Watson of the USA in 1975, Paul Lawrie of Scotland in 1999 and Pádraig Harrington of Ireland in 2007. The last three championships were all won in playoffs.
The Open Championship will return to Carnoustie in 2018.
The Station Hotel – Golf at Turnberry was a secret treasured only by locals until railway companies began to develop Scotland’s magnificent landscape into attractions that would lure travellers to the countryside and require a ride on their trains. The dream of escaping the bustling city for the high life inspired day-trippers, weeklong boarders and families to visit seaside resorts all over England, Wales, Ireland and Scotland, and so the South-Western Railway built its line from Ayr to Girvan, and the Station Hotel at Turnberry.
On 17 May 1906, the resort opened, offering luxury rarely seen on such a scale at the time¬. With its electric lighting, central heating, hot and cold running water, and saltwater plunge baths, the Station Hotel offered a rare glimpse into a whole new way of living. Designed by a talented young architect, James Miller, the hotel at Turnberry was necessarily grand, but intentionally unostentatious. The classic combination of white plasterwork and red pan tile roof is still part of the iconography of Turnberry today. Inside, opulent appointments were specified throughout, and little expense was spared. Service was of an equally high standard, with teams of maids, butlers, cleaners, cooks, liverymen and boilermen comfortably outnumbering the guests.
Though it has been dramatically modernised, guests at Turnberry today still stay in the same graceful building that early 20th century travellers did, and are attended to with the same pleasing service.
Day 5: The Old Course at St Andrews
- Full Scottish breakfast.
- Play The Old Course at St Andrews.
- Enjoy a night out in St Andrews
- Stay at the 5 Star Fairmont Hotel in St Andrews.
The Old Course at St Andrews – Considered by many to be the “home of golf” because the sport was first played on the Links at St Andrews in the early 15th century. The Old Course is also home of The Road Hole, the par-4 17th, one of the world’s most famous golf holes.
While winning the Open Championship is a crowning achievement for any golfer, a win at St Andrews is considered particularly important due to the course’s long tradition. Past winners at St Andrews include Tiger Woods (twice), John Daly, Zach Johnson (first Monday finish since 1988), Nick Faldo, Seve Ballesteros, Jack Nicklaus (twice), Tony Lema, Kel Nagle, Bobby Locke, Peter Thomson, Sam Snead, Dick Burton, Denny Shute, Bobby Jones, Jock Hutchison, James Braid (twice), John Henry Taylor (twice), Hugh Kirkaldy, Jack Burns, Bob Martin (twice), Jamie Anderson, Tom Kidd, Lorena Ochoa, Louis Oosthuizen, and most recently Stacy Lewis at the 2013 Women’s British Open.
In 2005 the Old Course was ranked as the greatest golf course outside the United States, by Golf Digest.
Day 6: New / Jubilee / Castle Course at St Andrews
- Full Scottish breakfast
- The Old Course Experience
- Play New/Jubilee/Castle Course at St Andrews
- Enjoy Complimentary Lunch
- Chauffeur driven to Glasgow airport for departure.
The New Course at St Andrews – The oldest ‘new’ course in the world, the second course at the Home of Golf was built by the Keeper of the Green Tom Morris in 1895 and it was imaginatively named to differentiate from its famous neighbour. Boasting undulating fairways and challenging greens, the New Course is a classic test of Links golf.
Jubilee Course at St Andrews – The third championship course at the Home of Golf, the Jubilee is considered by many to be the most challenging course on the famous Links. Built in 1897, it was originally intended for use by ladies and beginners; however, after seeing its prime golfing location between the New Course and the sea, the Jubilee was converted to a championship layout in 1988.
The Castle Course at St Andrews – The newest addition to St Andrews Links, The Castle Course opened in 2008 becoming the seventh course at the Home of Golf and part of the largest public golfing complex in Europe. Set on a rugged cliff-top with spectacular views over St Andrews, The Castle Course offers a memorable golfing experience.
